Night Runner

Max Turner did a really nice job on this book. I picked it up in the airport (I'd forgotten the book I was currently reading) since I couldn't envision a 4 hour flight without a good read. I was not disappointed. Clearly, the plot is geared towards the shorter-attention-span group of sub 20 year olds...but this is an excellent read. Vampires, references to werewolves and action around every turn. I just wish the second book in the series was in print so I could keep on going....

Zack Thompson is different. Instead of living in an orphanage, he lives in a mental ward and that's because he's basically allergic to everything - from specific foods to even the sun. Zack lives a nocturnal life - running, reading, and eating at night and sleeping during the day. Zack thinks nothing of his lifestyle until an old man crashed a motorcycle into the mental ward. Suddenly, Zack is thrown into an extraordinary adventure. Along for the ride is Zack's best childhood friend, Charlie, and a new, intriguing, beautiful girl named Luna. Not only will Zack figure out about his odd living arrangements and his family, but Zack will find out what he is. And it isn't human. Max Turner writes a thrilling novel that draws the reader in right from the beginning. Broken up into relatively short chapters, this novel is full of twists and turns that will never leave the reader bored. Reviewed by: Steph

For eight years Zack Thomason lived in Nicholls Ward, the home for the mentally disturbed of the Peterborough Civil Hospital; not because he is crazy, but because of a rare medical condition. Max cannot abide sunlight or food with the only nourishment his body accepts and digests is a drink made by Nurse Ophelia. He obviously sleeps during the day and is awake at night. Thus when a man drives a vehicle through the lobby, Zack hears him state that he has come to see Zack. Before the intruder is shot to death, he warns Zack that "he" is coming for him. Soon after that incident, his Uncle Max visits Zack, which is a shocker because the youngster thought he had no living relatives. Max explains to Zack that he and the lad's late father were vampire hunters; which he still is. His father died trying to kill Baron Vrolok, who survived the attack by drinking Zack's blood; that turned the child into a vampire too. The police under the Baron's control arrive to take Zack with them, but the driver of the Harley that ran through the door rescues the boy. They get separated and Zack struggles to survive on his own in the outside world. He meets with his mortal friend Charlie who visited him at the ward and with Charlie's pal and Zach's love interest Luna unaware the danger he places them in until it is too late; the Baron is coming for his "offspring". This is a coming of age urban fantasy as the protagonist adjusts to what he is, what happened to his biological father, dealing with the challenge of his blood sire, and struggling with his natural adversarial relationship with his uncle. He is a good person who must make choices some of which seem bad if he is to survive. Charlie the king of chaos and Luna are there for him as Max Turner provides an enjoyable vampire thriller that will keep his teen audience up late night running alongside of the hero. Harriet Klausner

"Zack" Thomson's famous archaeologist father died years ago. He had been crushed in Libya when some ruins fell upon him. That day Zack became an orphan. Instead of being placed in a foster home or orphanage, Zack was admitted to a mental facility. Due to his strange allergies to the sun, among other things, it was the only place that could properly care for him. For eight years Zack has been content residing in the mental hospital. Now he is fifteen-years-old. Other than Charlie Rutherford, who is one year older, Zack's only real friend has been Nurse Ophelia. Charlie visits at night on weekends and the two are simply teen guys doing teen things, such as playing video games on huge monitors. As for Nurse Ophelia, she makes the best strawberry smoothies. That is good since it is the ONLY thing Zack can eat. (Goes back to his allergies and medical conditions.) Yet everything changes when a man crashes through the lobby wall on a motorcycle and tells Zack to run. Soon afterward Zack meets his uncle, Maximilian. This is how Zack learns that he has no allergies or medical conditions. Zack had been bitten by a vampire, Baron Vrolok, the day his father died. Maximilian is a vampire hunter and had been his father's partner. Before Maximilian can take over Zack's care and help him learn what he needs for survival, Everett Johansson arrives. Everett is in the service of the vampires, possibly Baron Vrolok, and Zack must flee. **** FOUR STARS! I believe teens will enjoy this new vampire series most. After all, the main "good guys" are teens and the story-line follows young Zack; however, many adults may find themselves intrigued as well. I certainly was. (The author lives in Canada, so if you live in America please know that some words are spelled slightly different from what you are used to.) This story moves at a good, steady pace and more than a few surprises spring up to keep readers on their toes. All-in-all, this title builds a strong foundation on which the author could build a fascinating series. Lots of potential shows within these pages. I look forward to the next installment. **** Reviewed by Vanessa Storme for Huntress Reviews.

Due to severe sun and food allergies, Zack Thomson has had to live in a mental ward in the eight years since his father died, leaving him an orphan. It's a quiet, content life, but when a burly man on a motorcycle comes barreling in one night, telling Zack to run, his whole life is turned upside down. He learns the scary truth about his father, an uncle he never knew he had, and what he really is. Night Runner is a vampire tale like no other, focusing on family secrets, danger, and choosing what is right rather than the romance and fluff. Zack's character is very easy-going, and his down to earth personality and search for the truth makes him a very likable character. Turner's writing style can be somewhat blunt and jerky at times, and his focus is on the action, something that will most likely appeal to reluctant readers. The ending seems a bit hurried, and leaves you expecting more, but overall Night Runner is a great suspenseful read; fast-paced, mysterious, sometimes a little morbid, and funny in parts. This is a thrilling vampire read, and it will keep up late with Zack and his friends.